Gary officials recently cleaned the Dollar General property at 801 S. Lake St. after attempts to get the business to cut overgrowth and remove garbage on its own failed.

Deputy Mayor Trent McCain said he spoke with the store manager Aug. 2 about the condition of the property after receiving complaints from a citizen.

“I drove by there, saw it was in terrible shape and made a video of it on that day to document the condition,” McCain said.

McCain said he raised the issue with the manager, who put him in touch with the acting district manager. After multiple failed promises the site would be cleaned, McCain said the city hired contractors to bring it into compliance with city code.

Since then, McCain said the company has agreed to pay for the work.

A person answering the phone at the Lake Street location declined to comment. Dollar General’s corporate media line did not immediately respond to a request for information.

McCain said he has had conversations with other businesses regarding similar conditions, but those were rectified by the business in a timely fashion.

The deputy mayor said the city plans to use the resources at its disposal to go after property owners to maintain their parcels. The city has the ability to place a lien against properties for cleanup. Future plans including hiring an attorney devoted solely to addressing blighted properties.

McCain said the city wants to work on addressing blight issues with local businesses on three tiers — corporate owned, franchises, and independent businesses.

McCain said if the city holds each tier accountable for keeping their properties maintained and clean it will hopefully trickle down to the next tier. He said the city also plans to hold residential property owners like banks holding homes in foreclosure accountable for the condition of its properties.

“Of course the city has to clean up its own act,” McCain said. There are about 3,000 parcels owned by the city. Some are improved, some are not.

“We think if we do it in those three phases, the folks that own homes are going to get the message. We have to clean up the city,” McCain said.

The city will participate in National Clean Up Day 2021 Sept. 17 and 18 and are encouraging businesses, groups and individuals to participate. McCain said the city added Friday to the cleanup weekend so city workers can participate in the event.

Carrie Napoleon is a freelance reporter for the Post-Tribune.